The Institution
by angelchica
Summary: When Cordelia finds herself a prisoner in a mental institution, it’s up to Angel to find a way to get her out. a/c baby! who else?


Title: The Institution  
  
Author: Angelchica  
  
Email: Mistyblue622@hotmail.com  
  
Summary: When Cordelia finds herself a prisoner in a mental institution, it's up to Angel to find a way to get her out. a/c baby! who else?  
  
Spoiler: none, duh!  
  
Disclaimer: Well obviously these characters do not belong to me because if they did then I would be rich and famous and have successful shows under my name, but I don't. The Verbado demons mentioned are all mine. As are Stoner and Mrs. Nelson. They were created out of my head so they are so mine!  
  
Feedback: As always please review! I love writing fanfiction and if I disappoint you I want to know so I can write better. But if you like it then let me know so I can continue to please my audience. If you ever have any ideas let me know! I would love to write about ideas that you guys tell me!  
  
  
  
  
It was late now and it had not stopped raining since the morning. Angel and Wesley were sitting around the hotel's ground floor just watching some TV when they heard the door open. They both turned around and saw Cordelia who was holding some shopping bags in both of her hands. Wesley started to laugh. Cordelia was soaked in water from head to toe. If Angel wasn't as depressed as he always was then he probably would have started to laugh as well but for a second he forgot about that fact and let out a small chuckle. Cordelia looked at both of them furiously.  
  
"I just had the worse day in my life and it's not funny!" Cordelia yelled out which made Wesley laugh even harder. Angel went over to the bathroom and grabbed a towel and then made his way to where Cordelia was and offered her the towel. "Thanks."  
  
"What happened?" Angel asked as he took a look at his Seer. She was soaking wet. Her hair which always was in the perfect way was now all over the place. Her clothes were soaking wet. The clothes that Cordelia always took such great care of was now ruined. Then he looked at her shoes. Her expensive shoes had been ruined. He noticed that one shoe had a heel and wondered what had happened to the other shoe's heel. He looked up and saw that in her hand was his answer. He looked at her and noticed that her mascara was running. She had obviously been crying. Angel couldn't help but feel heartbroken when he saw her.  
  
"Well you know that I was going to treat myself to some shopping. Well I did, or so that's what I thought. I went over to 5th Avenue and I found the cutest pair of pants with a shirt that could match it perfectly and it wasn't that expensive. I think it came out to about 300 dollars," Cordelia said as she continued on with her story, "So, as I went over to the cashier I handed her my credit card and then she told me that I couldn't use it because it was stolen! Somebody forgot to call and say that we had found my purse!" Cordelia yelled as she looked over at Wesley who was now literally on the floor laughing.  
  
"Oh you think that's funny! Well let's see if you still think this is funny. I just so happened to have grabbed your wallet on my way out and," she said as she took out Wesley's wallet and took out his credit card, "I thought well I could borrow Wesley's and just get whatever I want so I did and now that I think about it, I don't think I want to give you the money anymore!" she yelled as Wesley looked at her with a mad face.  
  
"You did what! Your joking, right?" Wesley shouted as he got up from the floor. He could hear Angel in the background laughing softly. Cordelia ignored him and continued on with her story.  
  
"It looked like it was about to start raining so I thought I would call up a cab to take me home but oh guess what, I didn't have any spare money because I had spent all of it trying to pay off some of the accessories I had gotten. So now I was stuck walking home and you know that 5th Avenue isn't exactly that close to home and walking in heels isn't exactly the best idea," Cordelia said as she sat down on the step and started to unbuckle her shoes.  
  
"So I started walking and then well what do you think happened? It obviously started to rain. Not to mention that it is like freezing out there. Oh wait that's not it, my heel broke on me! So there I was walking like a chicken! And now my feet are hurting like crazy!" she yelled as she took off her shoes and Angel noticed that they were all blistered. He made a face of pain. He could imagine how horrible Cordelia was feeling.   
  
"All I want to do now is take a long bath cause I don't think that I could stand for that long and then just sleep forever. Do you mind if I spend the night in the hotel cause I don't think I could make it to my apartment?" Cordelia asked Angel.  
  
"Sure," he said as he noticed that Cordelia was starting to get up and decided to help her up but then she grabbed her head and fell back down in Angel's arms. Great just what she needed. A horrible vision to end the worse day of her life. The pain was unbearable yet she had to bear it. The sharp pain started to make it's way toward the front of her head and she moaned from the pain.   
  
Then she saw it, demons, big ugly demons. They were huge and looked like big messed up bulls. It had a nose ring and had two horns coming out of its head. He had two extremely long, green teeth coming out of it's mouth. It was a gross olive green color and had a long tail that was coiled up. Cordelia grabbed her head once again. This vision was lasting too long.  
  
"Hurry, get some aspirin and paper and pencil!" Angel yelled to Wesley as he got up and did what he was told. Angel just continued to hold on to Cordelia as he had a hurt expression on his face. He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't take seeing her like this anymore. She didn't deserve to see all this. She was so young and yet she had seen it all.   
  
The demons were fighting people and she could see who it was. It was Lindsay and Lilah.   
  
Finally the vision seemed to be fading away but the pain still remained there. Cordelia opened her eyes and looked up at Angel. He could see the tears in her eyes. She was sobbing and he took her in his embrace and tried to comfort her.  
  
"It's ok, it's ok," Angel said reassuringly as Cordelia let her head rest on Angel's chest and continued to cry. Angel was completely heartbroken.   
  
* * * * *  
  
"Cordelia, you didn't have to come. You should have stayed home," Angel said.  
  
"No, I had to come. I don't want you to just because you have problems with Lindsay and Lilah, just let them get killed. I had to make sure you didn't lose your mind out here," Cordelia said. Angel knew she was right. If he had come out here by himself, who knows what he would have done. Then Angel heard the fighting. He started to run and the others followed him.  
  
"Hey! Could you guys slow down a bit!" Cordelia yelled as she tried to catch up to the guys. Her feet were still killing her and running wasn't exactly on her list. Finally when she got there she saw Angel and Wesley fighting against the demons and saw that Lilah started to run away. Lindsay lay on the floor and Cordelia decided to go and see how he was.  
  
"Are you okay?" she asked. He nodded and started to get up. She could see that he was struggling to get up.  
  
"Are you hurt?" she asked. He looked at her.  
  
"I'll be fine," he said. Cordelia turned around and saw that Angel and Wesley were still fighting the demons.  
  
"I have to go help," she said but then Lindsay grabbed her arm. He had a huge smile on his face.  
  
"No," he said. as he grabbed both of her arms.  
  
"Let go of me! You're hurting me," she said to him as he got up which in turn made her get up.  
  
"You know, I think those guys over there take you for granted. You are so beautiful," he said.  
  
"You know, if you were somebody else, that might have sounded flattering," she said as she continued to try to break free of his grip.   
  
"Like who? Angel?" he said as he looked at her and had a fierce grip on her wrists.  
  
"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked furiously.   
  
"I don't know, you tell me," he said. Cordelia started to try to break free from his grip again and then he forced a kiss. Cordelia was struggling. Angel turned around and saw Lindsay kissing Cordelia and saw how she was struggling to break free from his grip. He felt so mad. So jealous. His game face appeared and he ran over to where Cordelia and Lindsay were. He managed to pull them apart and then punched Lindsay hard in the face which sent Lindsay flying over to a garbage can. Angel followed to where Lindsay was. He picked him up and noticed that he mentioned something to someone but Angel punched him again which sent Lindsay back to the floor.  
  
Cordelia was too scared to stop Angel but she knew she had to do something. She started to go over to where Angel was but then someone pulled her from her arm. She turned around and saw that it was the demon. Cordelia got scared. She looked past the demon and noticed that Wesley was on the ground trying to get up. Then she looked back at the demon. It was staring back at her.  
  
"Let me go, you big ugly bull!" she yelled. She could tell that the bull was laughing.  
  
"The boss is right. We are going to have so much fun with you," the demon said as his two big, green fangs came down from his mouth. Cordelia was scared by now.   
  
Wesley motioned to Angel to look behind him. Angel turned around and saw when the demon sliced Cordelia's wrists with his sharp fangs. Then he saw her fall. Angel dropped Lindsay who by now was badly beaten up.  
  
Angel ran over to Cordelia. The demon had disappeared off into the night.   
  
"Cordy! Cordelia!" he called out to her. Then he heard a car run by and Lilah came out with two big guys who helped Lindsay up and took him in the limo. The limo sped up and drove off into the night. Angel picked up Cordelia and saw that Wesley, who was badly beaten himself was coming.  
  
"I tried to help her but-"  
  
"We have to get her home," Angel interrupted Wesley. Wesley took the wheel and Angel sat in the back of his black convertible as he tried to get Cordelia awake. Then he saw her moving.  
  
"Cordelia, take it easy. We're going home," Angel said as Wesley pulled over at the hotel. they entered the Hyperion's doors and Angel placed Cordelia on the couch.  
  
"Wesley, I need some bandages, water, towels!" Angel yelled out to Wesley.  
  
"What happened?" Cordelia asked as she was a bit disoriented.  
  
"Well, I was hoping you could tell me that," he said as Wesley came back with the things Angel asked him to bring. Angel drenched the towels in the water and started to cure Cordelia's wrists.  
  
"Oww!" she yelled as she flinched every time Angel passed the towel through Cordelia's hurt wrists.  
  
"Sorry but I have to do this," Angel said. "What happened?" Angel asked Cordelia this time.  
  
"Well, you went off to go beat the crap out of Lindsay and just as I was going to go stop you this demon thing stopped me. Then his big green fangs came down from his mouth and he sliced them across my wrists," Cordelia said.  
  
"Something tells me that Wolfram & Hart planned this. I don't think this was some kind of accident," Angel said as they heard someone enter through the Hyperion's front doors.  
  
"Hey! Did I miss anything?" Gunn asked.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The limo pulled up in front of Wolfram & Hart Industries. Lilah came out and the two men that were carrying Lindsay followed. Then the demon came out and followed as well. All of them entered the building. They then entered Lilah's office.  
  
"Just lay him down on the couch," Lilah said. the two men laid Lindsay on the couch as he moaned from the pain.  
  
"Hey, how come I don't have a couch in my office?" Lindsay asked.  
  
"Are you happy now? Is this what you wanted? You almost got killed! You ruined the plan!" Lilah yelled at Lindsay.  
  
"No, I think the plan came out better than what we had planned," Lindsay said with a grin on his face. Lilah just looked at him a bit confused.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Lilah asked him.  
  
"Well yesterday, after you left the meeting, something better came to me. We said we would kill the girl but then I thought, she might be useful alive," Lindsay said, still grinning.  
  
"I don't understand," Lilah said.  
  
"Do you ever? Anyways, the Verbado demon dipped his teeth in a special substance that we prepared. This substance will allow us to know when that chick gets her visions. We can even target them," he said.  
  
"How? How is this going to help us?"  
  
"Well we can be ready for it. We make sure that the girl is outside with a big crowd. We target the vision and then we have our oh so very loyal paramedics waiting for her," Lindsay said.  
  
"Paramedics?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, you know we have strong ties with the Mental Institution of LA All we have to do is make them see how the girl gets when she gets those visions. Once they see that and sees that her wrists are slashed, they'll think she's crazy and take her away," Lindsay said.  
  
"But Angel will be there," she said.  
  
"That's not my concern. He can't stop them. It's his word against everybody else. Everyone will see Cordelia's breakdown and will say that she's crazy. Angel won't be able to stop them from taking her away. We're finally going to get Angel. And right where it hurts him more," Lindsay said as he saw Lilah smile.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Cordelia woke up the next day. She turned and saw that the clock said it was 12:30. She had overslept. She got up slowly. Her feet were still sore and so were her wrists but she felt much better than yesterday. She went over to the bathtub and started to fill it up with water. Finally she was going to take her much needed bubble bath. Then she heard a knock on the door.  
  
"Come in!" she yelled out. She heard someone enter the room and eventually she saw that it was Angel.  
  
"Hey, how do you feel?" he asked Cordelia.  
  
"A whole lot better than yesterday but I'm still kind of sore but this bubble bath is going to make up for it. Thanks for asking," she said.  
  
"Yeah, no problem," Angel said. Cordelia looked at him and then remembered Lindsay's words from the night before.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"You know, I think those guys over there take you for granted. You are so beautiful," he said.  
  
"You know, if you were somebody else, that might have sounded flattering," she said as she continued to try to break free of his grip.   
  
"Like who? Angel?" he said as he looked at her and had a fierce grip on her wrists.  
  
"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked furiously.   
  
"I don't know, you tell me," he said.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"Cordelia?" Angel called out again.  
  
"Oh sorry. I was just thinking about how great that bubble bath is going to be," she replied. Angel looked at her for another second and then left.   
  
Soon after Cordelia was in the tub enjoying her bubble bath. But she wasn't enjoying is as much as she would have wanted to. She kept on thinking about what Lindsay had told her and their conversation kept playing through her head. Why had he said that about Angel? So she pictured Angel in her mind telling her that she was beautiful and saying all these sweet nothings. You could see a small smile come across Cordelia's face but then she shook away that thought.   
  
"Cordelia, Cordelia!" she scolded herself, "Why do you torture yourself. There's no way Angel will ever think about you in that way! And even if he did, it doesn't mean that I-" Cordelia stopped herself. Could it be that Lindsay was right. He didn't't say it but she knew what he was talking about now. Could it be that she had feelings for the vampire with a soul?  
  
* * * * *  
  
Later that day, the whole gang was downstairs. They were just lounging around and Wesley was in the office looking up some information when a middle aged woman entered the hotel. They all looked up.  
  
"Is this Angel Investigations?" she asked.  
  
"Yes. We help the helpless. How can we help you?" Cordelia asked cheerfully.  
  
"Well, I don't know how to say this without it sounding totally far fetched," the lady said.  
  
"Oh don't worry. We've seen it all. There's nothing that won't sound far fetched to us," Gunn said.  
  
"Well...okay. Last night, I was attacked by a mutant. He was hideous. He had two big horns on opposite sides of his head. And I'll never forget those green teeth," the woman said.  
  
"Do you know anything else about this demon?" Angel asked.  
  
"No...well...actually I remember something else. There was a young man there. He called the mutant Verbado," she said.  
  
"I remember hearing that name before. Well can you tell me where you encountered this demon so we can go check out the place and we'll let you know of anything that happens," Angel said. The lady quickly took out a small note pad and a pen and started to write down some street names and her phone number. The lady tore out the sheet and handed it to Angel.  
  
"Thank you so much! You truly are an Angel," the lady said as she went off and exited the hotel. Then Wesley came in the room with a book in his hand and a huge smile on his face.  
  
"I found it! The demon is called a Verbado!" he yelled. Angel, Gunn, and Cordelia just looked at each other.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The woman walked out towards her car and got inside. There she took her cell phone and dialed a number. She let the phone ring a couple of times and then someone picked up.  
  
"Hello, hi. It's been done. They are on their way," the woman said. She was listening to the person before she continued.  
  
"Yeah, she's going to. So when can I pick up my money?" the woman asked. "But Lindsay! You promised! Okay, fine. Call you later."  
  
* * * * *  
  
Angel and the gang got out of the car. They noticed that there were many people there.  
  
"That's weird. I don't think the demon will be showing if so many people are here," Cordelia said.   
  
"Well we'll go check out over here, see if anything is going on," Gunn said as he and Wesley left to go check out the place. Cordelia and Angel looked around for a little while more. Then Cordelia felt the world starting to move on her. The sharp pain was menacing to come again.  
  
"Angel!" she yelled. Angel turned around and saw that Cordelia was holding her head. He quickly ran to her side as she fell into her arms.  
  
"Take it easy! What do you see?" Angel asked. There were lot's of people just looking at them.  
  
"I see it! The demon! The one with the big teeth!" Cordelia yelled as she fought the vision and its pain. Angel could hear sirens. He thought that maybe someone had called an ambulance. Then he saw the van. He looked back down at Cordelia who was still fighting the vision. If someone in fact had called an ambulance, it had gotten there in way less than two minutes. The men came out of the ambulance and were dressed in all white. One of them was carrying a white jacket. They ran towards Angel and Cordelia. By now it looked like the vision was gone but the pain still remained.  
  
"Excuse me sir. We'll take care of the rest," one of the men said.  
  
"No, she's fine," Angel said but then he noticed something wrong. He looked up into the big crowd that had appeared and there he saw them. Lilah and Lindsay.   
  
"Hey! Let go of me!" Cordelia yelled out which made Angel look back down. He saw that the men were trying to put the white jacket on her.  
  
"Stop!" he yelled to them as he pulled them off of her and helped her get up.  
  
"Sir please. It is obvious that she needs help," one of the men said.  
  
"No, I don't! I'm fine!" Cordelia yelled as she held onto Angel.  
  
"Ma'am, no offense but you're not okay! You just broke down in the middle of a street saying that you could see some demon and that is not normal!" Then the man noticed Cordelia had bandages around her wrists. Cordelia noticed that the man was looking at her wrists and she hid them quickly.  
  
"Ma'am, why are you're wrists covered in bandages?" the man asked. Cordelia looked up at Angel.  
  
"I got hurt! The other day someone-"  
  
"That's enough! Take her away!" the man said as a whole big group came towards her.  
  
"No!" Cordelia yelled as she held onto Angel with all her might as he did the same.  
  
"Take her away!" Angel turned around and knew it was Lindsay's voice.  
  
"She's crazy! She needs help!" Lilah yelled. Then the whole crowd started in an uproar. Angel protected Cordelia with all his might. He couldn't let them take her away from him. Then he felt someone shock him in his back. Angel moaned and fell to the ground, letting go of Cordelia.  
  
"Angel!" she yelled as the men grabbed her and put the jacket on. Cordelia fought with all her might. Angel looked up at Cordelia just as another shock was given to him. He couldn't get up and tears welled up in his eyes. Everything went in such slow motion. He saw Cordelia, fighting with all her might, screaming out for him, for him to help her.  
  
"Cordelia," he said softly as he tried to reach her but then he couldn't. They locked her in the car and started to drive away. He could see Cordelia in the van's back window. She was crying, calling out to him and he couldn't do anything. Where were Gunn and Wesley? The crowd started to pull apart until the only one's left were Lilah and Lindsay. Then he heard running footsteps. He turned and saw Gunn and Wesley. He saw that they had a few scratches and knew that they had been fighting.  
  
"What happened?" Wesley asked as he and Gunn bent down and helped Angel up.  
  
"They took her! They took Cordelia and I couldn't stop them!" he said as they both helped him over to his car where Lindsay and Lilah were waiting for him.  
  
"Well, well. Looks like we finally won, Angel," Lilah said.  
  
"Don't be too sure. I will find her! And when I do, you two will be sorry!" Angel said as his game face came on.  
  
"If you even try to come near, I will personally kill her," Lindsay said in a menacing tone.  
  
"If you dare even lay a finger on her, I swear to you that I will personally kill you," Angel said as Lindsay started to laugh. He tried to break free from Gunn and Wesley's grip but they held him back. Lilah came and stood in front of him.  
  
"You know there are other women here that need your help more. Many more woman that are worth it more. Other women that need you more," Lilah said as she gave Angel a 'You know I want you' look.  
  
"Even if you were somewhat decent, I would never even touch you in any way!" Angel yelled.  
  
"Why? Because the only one you love is that chick with the visions?" she asked.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Angel asked as his game face changed back into that gorgeous face of his.  
  
"What am I talking about?" she asked as she took one last look at him and then walked away followed by Lindsay. Together they drove off.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The three of them entered the Hyperion's front doors. By now, Angel had regained all of his strength. He was so mad. He took off his black leather jacket and slammed it down the couch. He ran over to the TV and kicked it with all his might sending the appliance all the way to the other side of the room with a big hole right in the middle.  
  
"Angel, calm down," Wesley said.  
  
"How can I calm down when Cordelia is in the hands of Wolfram & Hart!" Angel yelled out. He remembered that the woman had given him her phone number on the piece of paper. He took it out and handed it to Wesley.  
  
"What is this?" Wesley asked.  
  
"Take it and call the number. It's from the woman that came in this afternoon. Get everything you can out of her," Angel said as he went towards his room downstairs.  
  
"You think she has something to do with this?" Wesley asked.  
  
"It doesn't matter what I think! Just do what I told you!" Angel yelled.  
  
"You do know that you're not the leader or whatever anymore," Wesley said.  
  
"Wes," Gunn said knowing that it was a mistake for him to have said that.  
  
"Do you ever want to see Cordelia alive again?" he yelled out.  
  
"Yes, but-"  
  
"Then do what I told you!" he yelled as he disappeared into the basement. Wesley just looked at the paper. Gunn snatched it out of his hand.  
  
"I'll do it. I was there when she was telling her story so maybe I can get stuff out of her," Gunn said.  
  
Angel descended down to his room. He sat down on the bed. How could he have let her go? He was supposed to help her, to protect her and he had let her down. Then he thought back to Lilah's words:  
  
* * * * *  
  
"Even if you were somewhat decent, I would never even touch you in any way!" Angel yelled.  
  
"Why? Because the only one you love is that chick with the visions?" she asked.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Angel asked as his game face changed back into that gorgeous face of his.  
  
"What am I talking about?" she asked.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Angel shook away the thought. What was she trying to say to him but then it hit him. He had felt his heart, well if he would have had one, crushed when he saw Cordelia's face. She looked at him with a scared face. She called out for him so that he could save her and he couldn't. He thought back to how she had screamed out his name. He remembered how scared she was when she took a strong grip to him and how he wouldn't let her go. She was so scared. But then he thought to when they pulled her away from him. How they parted him and when he was on the floor, how he reached out to her but wasn't even close enough to feel her touch. He shook the memory away.   
  
Then other things started to come to him. How she always cared for him. She was the one that would always cure his scars and wounds whenever he would get hurt. She did it with such tenderness. She was the one, the only one that ever made him smile or laugh. He thought about how she had saved him from many things. Then came the visions. She had chosen to see those visions because of him. They could try to find ways to get rid of them but she wouldn't let them. She wanted to feel worthy in a way. She wanted to help out but he didn't know if she knew that she was the strongest out of all of them. She was the one who saw other people's pain and torture. She was the one who had to suffer from the pain the visions left her. She didn't deserve it. And now she was in the hands of Wolfram & Hart and who knows what they would do to her.  
  
"I'm going to find you, Cordelia. I promise," Angel said aloud as he ran upstairs.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Cordelia woke up with a splitting headache. She looked down and saw that she was lying on the floor. She had some trouble sitting up but she finally managed to. She noticed that the people had removed the jacket and that now she was just wearing a cheap, oversized shirt. Much like the ones they wear in hospitals. But then she realized that it wasn't a dream.   
  
Cordelia looked around the tiny, white room she was in. There was nothing. No bed, no TV, no mirrors, no bathroom. Just a tiny room where you could probably only fit five people. Cordelia got up. She looked around the walls. There were no windows or anything to look outside the walls. She turned around and saw a door. She went over to it and turned the knob. She started to fight with the door. It was locked. The door seemed to have a little square window in it but it was covered.  
  
"This can't be happening! I'm not crazy!" Cordelia yelled as she went over to a corner and huddled there. "I'm not crazy."   
  
Then she heard someone turning the door knob. She got up and stood there. In walked in Lindsay with a tray of food.  
  
"Awake already. I thought you'd still be sleeping," he said.  
  
"Where am I? Why am I here?" Cordelia asked Lindsay.  
  
"Look I know denial is the first step in this whole process," Lindsay said.  
  
"Process?"   
  
"Yeah, you're going to be in here for a long time and your beloved vampire won't be able to save you," Lindsay said. Cordelia looked at him.   
  
"I swear if you don't let me go-"   
  
"What? Huh? If I don't let you go what?"  
  
"Angel will find me and he will kick your-"  
  
"Look, there's no way Angel knows you're here. Sure he knows that you're in a mental institution but he will never know which one. Plus, this hospital is with good ties with Wolfram & Hart. They won't backstab us. They know their deal."  
  
"You sick-"  
  
"Okay, enough with the insults! It's time for dinner," Lindsay said as he went over to Cordelia and offered the tray. Cordelia looked at the tray and then at Lindsay. Cordelia grabbed the tray and threw it at Lindsay. Cordelia made her way to the door but was caught by Lindsay.  
  
"Agh!" Cordelia screamed.  
  
"You think that was funny! You're going to wish you never did that!" Lindsay said as he punched Cordelia in the stomach. Cordelia fell to the ground holding her stomach.   
  
Lindsay took out a little container and opened it. Inside were many tiny pills. He grabbed one and went over to Cordelia. He grabbed her by her hair and all you could hear was Cordelia's screams. She tried to fight him but at the end, he was just too strong for her. He grabbed the pills and forced them through Cordelia's mouth. He held her mouth closed and put his other hand over her nose so she couldn't breathe. Eventually Cordelia was left no other choice than to swallow the pills. Once Lindsay saw that she swallowed the pill, he let go.   
  
"That's a good girl," Lindsay said as he stood up. He walked over to the door and left. Cordelia just sat there and watched him leave.   
  
"What did you make me take?" Cordelia asked herself aloud. She looked around slowly and tears started to stream down her cheeks. "Angel!" Cordelia called out. "Help me!" she said as she started to cry even harder. She looked at the room and noticed that everything started to move around. Everything was getting blurry and she couldn't focus.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The doorbell rang and Wesley went over to open the door. It was the woman who told them about the Verbado  
  
"Hi! I'm Mrs. Nelson. One of you guys said that you had information on the Verbados," she said.  
  
"Yes, yes, right this way," Wesley said as he lead her towards the office where they worked. Angel and Gunn were there.  
  
"Mrs. Nelson, so nice to see you," Gunn said. Mrs. Nelson just looked at him with a small smile.  
  
"Look let's just get this to the point. I know Wolfram & Hart paid you to say that you saw the demons. I know they paid you so that they could take Cordelia away," Angel said.  
  
"I don't know what you are talking about," the lady said. Angel's game face came on and the lady didn't seem to be affected by much.  
  
"I'm not in the mood for playing these games, Mrs. Nelson. You better tell me or else," Angel said.  
  
"You won't hurt me. You have a soul!" the lady screamed. Angel's face changed back to normal.  
  
"I knew it! You are in on it!" Angel said. The lady just looked at Angel.  
  
"I'm not telling you anything," the lady said.  
  
"What if we paid you?" Gunn asked. The lady hesitated but then shook her head.  
  
"You have to help us. They took Cordelia off to some mental institution and I don't know which one! She could be in a lot of danger right now. Please ma'am. If I get caught I won't say you told me," Angel said.  
  
"I'm sorry. I can't," Mrs. Nelson said as she grabbed her purse and left.  
  
"I'm sorry Angel," Wesley said.  
  
"No, I found out some things though. I know that she's in a mental institute," Angel said.  
  
"We already knew that," Gunn said.  
  
"Not really. Wolfram & Hart could have staged the whole thing just to mislead us but she didn't deny it when I said it," Angel said.  
  
"True," Gunn agreed.  
  
"Anyways, Wesley, I want you to pull up your file on Wolfram & Hart. Find out if they have any special ties with any mental institutes," Angel said. Wesley nodded his head and went off to work. Gunn walked over to Angel.  
  
"We'll find her, man," Gunn said. The phone rang and Angel went over to pick it up.  
  
"Angel Investigations. We help the helpless...Mrs. Nelson...You will? Thank you so much.... Where is she?...The Mental Institution of LA...it's okay...I won't say that you told me...Mrs. Nelson? Mrs. Nelson?"   
  
Angel hung up the phone. He picked up his coat and left the hotel.  
  
"Angel!" Gunn called out as he followed Angel out into the darkness.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Cordelia woke up. Her body felt so heavy. She tried to move but couldn't. What had they done to her?   
  
Had they poisoned me? she asked herself. She heard someone walk in but everything sounded so far away. She wanted to open her mouth and shout out Angel but she couldn't and right when she saw it wasn't Angel, her heart cringed. It was some big guy who she had never seen in her life. The man picked her up and took her out of the room.  
  
Am I saved? she asked herself but then she got her answer. She saw another room. One with one bed and a whole bunch of tools on both sides of the bed. The man threw her on the bed. Cordelia could feel the pain in her back. The man hooked her up to some IV and she could feel the liquid entering her system. She felt as if her body had gotten a little stronger and she felt she could talk now.  
  
"What are you doing to me?" she asked the man. "Who are you?"  
  
"I am Stoner and well you're going to get to see everything I'm going to do to you. This won't hurt a bit. Well actually, it will!" he said with a laugh as he held a knife in his hand. Cordelia screamed as he sliced the knife across her stomach. It was going to be a long and painful night for her.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Angel and Gunn walked through the doors. Wesley went over to the entrance.  
  
"What happened?" Wesley asked.  
  
"Mrs. Nelson's dead," Gunn said.  
  
"Did you find anything?" Angel asked Wesley.  
  
"Yes. In fact Wolfram & Hart have close ties with the Mental Institute of LA. It is very confidential and it has very strict security. It is a very conserved facility and has since been renovated with new techniques. It has special systems to keep unearthly creatures out of there," Wesley said.  
  
"Anything else?" Angel asked. Wesley hesitated. What he had found was disturbing and didn't want to tell Angel. "Well?"  
  
"Yes, well...this institute...it's kind of a torture chamber. Since the patients are crazy and never get cured or have family members that care for them, the doctors or amateurs practice on them to see if certain procedures would work or not," Wesley managed to say. Angel and Gunn were disgusted.  
  
"Have people died?" Gunn asked.  
  
"Yes. A great many," Wesley said. Angel looked down and slammed his fist down on the table which made it break in half. He quickly grabbed his leather jacket and once again headed for the door.  
  
"Angel we're coming," Gunn said.  
  
"No!" Angel yelled.  
  
"But Angel-" Wesley was interrupted  
  
"No!" Angel yelled again, "I can't let you guys come. It's too dangerous and if either one of you get caught, I don't know what would happen," Angel said as he left.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Angel passed by the institute. It had taken him an hour to get there. Angel parked his car in one of the little streets. He couldn't park it by the institute. He couldn't take any chances but then again, he couldn't park it too far away.  
  
"How am I going to get in," Angel asked himself. He pulled his jacket up as if to cover his profile. He passed by the entrance and noticed a man entering the institute talking to the guard.  
  
"Stoner here. If Lindsay asks tell him that the chick has gone through the operation and that she still lives and that she might not make it on the next one. Tell him that I went to take a break..."  
  
Stoner continued to say something to the guard. Angel walked on straight and then stopped by the corner. Stoner started to walk towards the street. Angel followed him. Stoner then entered an alley and then turned around.  
  
"What? You thought I didn't know I was being followed?" Stoner asked.  
  
"No, I knew you knew. I just had to play along," Angel said as they started to fight. Angel threw in some kicks here and there and one of them sent Stoner flying to a garbage can. Angel went over to him but then Stoner turned around and his game face turned on.  
  
"Well, isn't this a surprise!" Angel said as his game face came on and the two continued to fight. They were fighting for a long time, matching each other's moves until finally Angel threw some kicks and punches that sent the vampire flying over to the other side of the alley. Angel went over there and grabbed Stoner by the collar and held a stake in his other hand right above his heart.  
  
"Now, if you want to live, you better tell me everything I want to know!" Angel said as he saw the vampire's head nod. Angel's face changed back to normal.  
  
"When you were talking to the guard, you mentioned a girl. Who's the girl?" Angel asked.  
  
"There's lots-"  
  
"Don't mess with me! Who were you talking about?" Angel asked again.  
  
"It's some girl they just brought. I think her name is Cordelia or something like that," the vampire said.  
  
"What floor?"  
  
"I don't k-"   
"What floor is she on?" Angel asked as he scolded Stoner.  
  
"13th," the vampire said.  
  
"What room?"  
  
"Don't worry about that. Just go to the secretary. Tell her you want to see Cordelia. She'll give you the key. It says the number on it," the vampire said.  
  
"What did you do to her?" Angel asked.  
  
"I didn't-"  
  
"What did you do to her!" Angel yelled as he shook Stoner.  
  
"Lindsay told me to experiment on her,." Angel got so furious. He got the long white doctor's coat that Stoner was wearing and then drove the wooden stake through the vampire. All that was left of the vampire were ashes.   
  
Angel put the jacket on and headed towards the hospital. Angel started walking towards the entrance but was stopped by the guard. Angel hoped that the sunglasses and the long white jacket would work. Angel just stopped where he was but didn't turn around.  
  
"Where are you going?" the guard asked Angel.  
  
"Uh, Lindsay paged me and told me that he wanted to talk to me about the girl that I have been taking care of," Angel said as he heard the guard walking towards him.  
  
"Oh, it's you Stoner. You know better than to just walk in here without consent. You are the only vampire here so we have to make sure that you can get in without setting the alarms off," the guard said as Angel continued to walk and went into the hospital.   
  
He found the elevator and went in. He pushed the button that had 13 on it. The doors opened. He came out of the elevator and then saw that there were two long corridors on both sides of the hall. He saw that the first door of the right side of the corridor, it started with room 640 and noticed that the last door of the left side of the corridor ended with 639. In the middle of the room was the receptionist. He walked up to her and the lady just looked at him.  
  
"How can I help you?" the lady asked.  
  
"Uh, I'm Stoner and-"   
  
"Oh yes," the lady interrupted as she took a key out from the desk. Angel took it and saw that on the key was the number of the room. It was 666.   
  
"Thanks," he said. He turned around and started walking towards the corridor. He started to run down the hall and then stopped in front of the door that had 666 imprinted on it. He was impatient now. This was it. Cordelia would just be behind the door.   
  
He opened the door. Angel took his sunglasses off but saw that the room was in completes darkness. He ran his hand over the wall and soon enough he found a light switch. He turned the switch and Angel was suddenly blinded by the light. As soon as he got used to it he opened his eyes and just looked at the figure that was on the floor. A tear started to run down his face.  
  
Angel ran to Cordelia who was on the floor, huddled to herself. She had cuts all over her body. Many of which were still bleeding. Cordelia was just staring off into space. Angel ran to her.  
  
"Cordelia! Cordelia!" he called out her name but it was no use. She wasn't responding. Cordelia could hear a faint noise. It sounded as if someone was calling her name but it sounded so far away. She thought she heard Angel's voice calling out her name but she didn't know. She felt so weak. She couldn't even move. She heard it again. She kept on hearing someone calling out her name. It sounded like a whisper but she heard it. She didn't know who it was but she was scared. She felt someone run their hands through her hair and then she felt someone's touch on her cheek. She knew that touch very well.  
  
"Angel," she managed to whisper out.  
  
"Yes, Cordelia. It's me! It's me, Cordelia!" Angel cried out!   
  
Cordelia couldn't believe it. She didn't know if she was dreaming or hallucinating. She tried to move, but at the end she couldn't. Everytime she felt a surge of pain come in from all over her body. She moaned every time she tried to move. Angel wanted to pick her up and carry her out of there but he didn't know how without hurting her.  
  
"Cordelia, I'm going to pick you up and carry you out of here. I don't want to hurt you," Angel said. Cordelia heard his words. She knew the minute he tried to pick her up, she would be overcome with pain but she didn't care. She knew Angel would be as gentle as possible with her. But she also knew that once she was in his arms, the pain would all go away. Angel looked at his Seer again. How could anyone do this to someone so innocent?   
  
He picked up Cordelia very slowly but he could hear her moaning. He felt so bad because he knew he was hurting her but he knew no other way. He carried her out of the room and started walking down the corridor but then stopped. He turned back around and looked down the corridor. Then he started walking back. They passed the room where Cordelia had been until they reached the end of the corridor and he saw the big words EXIT. He pushed the door and he saw the flight of stairs. Angel started to descend them. He saw that after a while he was on the second floor. He stopped. He had to find the emergency exit. He opened the door and exited.   
  
Angel was walking down the halls. There were a whole bunch of people there. Mainly there were patients. Lot's of them. Some of them were just staring off into space but some where just yelling out things. He continued to walk. There had to be an emergency exit somewhere. He turned in a hallway and then he saw it. The big words he had seen before: EXIT. He ran to the door and then saw all the red words posted on the door: If opened, will set off alarm.  
  
Angel stared at the door and then down to Cordelia who's eyes were closed. He could just imagine all the pain that she was in. He knew that whatever he did, he was going to have to do it fast. He would have to descend the stairs as fast as he could and then run to his car. He looked out the door and saw that this side of the building would lead him directly to his car.   
  
Angel took an unneeded breath and kicked the door open. Angel heard the alarm go off. Angel descended the stairs as fast and smooth as he could. He could hear the commotion from inside the hospital. He was almost at the foot of the steps. He looked up and saw that a whole bunch of guards started to descend the stairs. Angel reached the bottom and ran to his car.   
  
He was glad that he had a convertible which made everything so much easier. He placed Cordelia as delicately as he could in the back seat. He could see the guards. He had no choice but to fight them.   
  
He took one look at Cordelia and ran to the guards. He didn't want them to come any closer to Cordelia and he wasn't going to let them. Angel started to fight them all at the same time. There were about 6 or 7. Angel was beating the crap out of all of them. They stood no chance.   
  
He saw that there were 6 guards on the floor. He turned around and saw that one of the guards was at the convertible. Angel ran as fast as he could. He saw the guard trying to get Cordelia but before he could, Angel came and pulled him from her and punched the guard in the face which sent the guard flying. Angel looked at Cordelia and jumped in the car. He turned the ignition key and then he sped forward.  
  
Angel took out his cell phone. He was calling Wesley. Angel waited for him to pick up the phone.  
  
"Wes! I found her...yeah I found her...that's not important right now...I'm heading for the hospital right now...the one we always go to...thanks...bye," Angel said as he hung up the phone.   
  
After driving for some minutes, they finally pulled over in front of the hospital. Angel got out of the car and went to get Cordelia. He picked her up and carried her to the hospital. He noticed how she was still bleeding. They entered the hospital.  
  
"Hurry! I need a doctor!" Angel yelled out. Finally a small nurse came up to him.  
  
"Follow me," she said as she led him to the emergency room. Once there, he laid her down.  
  
"I'm sorry sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. I can't have anybody else in here," the surgeon said as he kicked Angel out of the room.  
  
A few hours passed and Angel was impatient. What was taking so long? Then he saw Wesley and Gunn enter the hospital.  
  
"What took you guys so long?" he asked.  
  
"Sorry, man, don't get all uptight," Gunn said.  
  
"We had a client," Wesley said.  
  
"How is she?" Gunn asked.  
  
"I don't know. They've been in there for a long time and nobody has told me anything yet!" Angel yelled.  
  
"Angel, please, calm down. The important thing is that you found her alive," Wesley said.  
  
"Yeah but it's not like she's perfectly fine. Wes, you should have seen how I found her. It was awful. She was so hurt. She had cuts all over her body. She couldn't even move. It hurt her so much to just blink," Angel said as he looked down at the floor. He ran his hands through his hair. Wesley and Gunn just sat there with him.   
  
Then Angel heard someone coming towards him. He saw that it was the surgeon and immediately got up.  
  
"How is she, doctor?" Angel asked.  
  
"Well we stopped the bleeding. Her cuts were very deep. I'm surprised she managed to stay alive. But I'll tell you something. If you would have brought her in any later, it might have been today. Her pressure was very low and it still is but I managed to stabilize it. She is a very strong girl.  
  
"Can I see her?" Angel asked.  
  
"Well right now I've given her some morphine so that she could sleep and not worry about the pain. But, are you her family?" the surgeon asked.  
  
"Yes. We're all she has," Wesley said.  
  
"Well then alright. Only one of you can go in though. You understand," the surgeon said.  
  
"You go, Angel, we'll wait for you out here," Wesley said.  
  
"Thanks," Angel said as he followed the surgeon to a room.   
  
"She might not wake up but if you still want to go in you still can. You have five minutes."  
  
"Yes, thank you," Angel said as he opened the door. He went over to the bed where Cordelia laid. He looked at his Cordy, his Seer. There were cuts all over her body. How much torture she had gone through yet there she was still. He held an even higher respect to her now. He took Cordelia's hand and kissed it.  
  
"I'm sorry, Cordelia. I didn't mean for this to happen to you," Angel said.   
  
"Angel," Cordelia called out in a whisper.  
  
"Shh! Don't say anything. Just rest," Angel said as he smiled at her.  
  
"What happened?" she asked.  
  
"I got you out of that place you were. You're safe now," Angel said reassuringly as he ran his hand through her hair.  
  
"I was so scared."  
  
"I know, I know. But don't worry about it now. You're here, and you're going to get better. Just rest," Angel said. The surgeon came in.  
  
"Time's up," the surgeon said.  
  
"I have to go now Cordelia," Angel said.  
  
"No, don't leave! Please don't leave me! I don't want to be alone," Cordelia said. Angel looked up at the surgeon.  
  
"I know you don't normally allow this but do you think you could make an exception? Just this once?" Angel asked the surgeon.  
  
"Well, alright," the surgeon said as he left the room. Angel looked back at Cordelia.  
  
"Sleep. I'll be here," Angel said as he kissed Cordelia's forehead.  
  
  
  



End file.
